


bedside manner

by Liu



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Firefighters, Anesthesia, Epiphanies, Fluff and Crack, Hospitalization, Humor, M/M, Not Actually Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-26
Updated: 2017-09-26
Packaged: 2019-01-05 20:18:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12196674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Liu/pseuds/Liu
Summary: Ray and Mick are both firefighters. When Mick gets hurt and ends up in a hospital, Ray stays at his bedside and realizes a couple of things.Meanwhile, Mick is high on anesthesia and doesn't realize anything.





	bedside manner

**Author's Note:**

> Response to an anon tumblr prompt: 'Why are we whispering?' and also a result of a conversation with Gemenice about people on anesthesia being funny as hell (and the US healthcare being weird for getting people high for very little to no reason lol).

Ray doesn’t realize how much he’s been worried until Mick finally, _finally_ stirs. Watching him motionless on the hospital bed is easily one of the worst experiences Ray has ever been through, and that is saying something, counting the years of firefighting (and the childhood years with Sydney).

It’s not that Ray has any particular reason to be this worried: even the other firefighters gave him a few odd looks after he expressed his wish to stay until Mick woke up. They’re nothing more than colleagues – friends, maybe, if Mick even does friendship at all – but Ray can’t help the low thrum of anxiety that refuses to go away.

It abates a little only when Mick blinks his eyes open, a little unfocused as he takes in the hospital room. Ray’s back has cramped up bad from sitting in the hard plastic chair for hours, but he still snaps to attention and leans forward when he sees Mick coming to.

“Hey,” he says, quietly, in order not to startle the other man – who proceeds to squint at him and scowl, more in confusion than in anger. Ray has learned the language of Mick’s scowls a long time ago, and it definitely comes in handy now.

“Hey,” Mick hisses back, in that loud kind of whisper that carries. He blinks some more, glances around the room again, and refocuses on Ray. “Why are we whispering?”

“I… we don’t have to. You’re in a hospital,” Ray tells him, letting his voice settle back to a normal volume, if a little softer than he usually speaks. His subconscious isn’t willing to let go of the notion that Mick is a lot more fragile than he seems, that Ray got too darn close to losing him, even if he never truly _had_ him, not in ways he would like to. And that is something Ray doesn’t want to think about too hard, so he focuses on the task at hand and smiles at Mick.

“You’re going to be okay – that’s what the doctor said, at least. You’ll have to stay in bed for a little while, but soon you’ll be fine.”

He’s not sure who he’s trying to persuade, Mick or himself, but it doesn’t much matter, because Mick doesn’t seem all that concerned with his health. The drugs must still be in his system, because he doesn’t seem to be in pain, but then, Mick is also the guy who came to the station once with his leg split so wide open that the bone showed and requested that someone give him ‘a damn Band-Aid or something’.

Right now, Mick is squinting at Ray, like he’s trying to figure something out – before Ray can ask him what’s wrong, Mick blinks and blurts out:

“You’re hot.”

Wow. Ray can practically feel his whole face go _purple_ , he’s blushing so hard. That is definitely not what he would expect from Mick… he never thought Mick noticed him that way. In fact, Ray’s been under the impression that Mick doesn’t notice _anyone_ that way, but his drugged-out self must see the world – and Ray – in a new light.

But that’s not all. Ray doesn’t get much time to figure out how to react to his secret crush calling him ‘hot’ before Mick’s talking again:

“Are you my wife?”

The question pierces straight through Ray’s heart and leaves him yelping ‘uh?’ – it’s just his luck that it comes out as more of a ‘yeah?’. He wants to correct himself, but Mick relaxes into his pillow a little and a loopy expression of pure wonder transforms his features. He looks younger like that, and weirdly pleased with himself and the world. Ray doesn’t have the heart to wipe that happy, loopy grin off the man’s face.

“Wow,” Mick sighs, “I scored big time. How did I get you? Is my dick that big?”

He makes a shuffling motion like he’s trying to get his covers off, and Ray jumps to his bedside, keeping the sheets in place. The one thing he really, _really_ doesn’t need is for Mick to not-so-accidentally flash him. Not for the lack of interest, though.

“That’s not important!” Ray says quickly, and Mick stops struggling for the control over his bedcovers. He scowls up, and Ray wonders what it means for him and his heart that he still finds Mick… not hot, nobody can truly be hot lying in a hospital bed, wearing only a hospital shirt and a handful of tubes. But that’s exactly the problem: Ray could deal with being attracted to someone unattainable. He’s done it before, and he’s not fifteen anymore, ruled by his hormones and little else. However, his attraction to Mick has shifted somewhere along the way, becoming far softer and sweeter than skin-deep lust, and that scares Ray, especially when Mick looks at him like this, open and guileless and trusting Ray to tell him the truth.

“I,” he starts, and that’s as far as he goes before choking up a bit. He probably shouldn’t be drinking an injured man’s water, but he reaches for the plastic cup and takes a sip, just to wash down the sudden dryness in his throat. Mick won’t be allowed to drink for a while, anyway. “Um. I like… your personality?”

“Am I ugly?” Mick asks, visibly unhappy with that explanation. “I hope I’m rich. You should have a lot of nice things. Do I give you nice things?”

Well… if Ray counts the scarf Mick lent him and never took back… “Yeah. You do.”

Mick seems satisfied with that answer, nodding once. “Good. I’m going to sleep now. And when I wake up I’ll get you a ring. So that everyone knows you’re mine.”

He closes his eyes and Ray’s heart melts into a puddle of ache and love – because he can’t pretend anymore, he’s in love with Mick Rory, and maybe that’ll get him nowhere unless he keeps Mick on a med drip for the rest of their lives, but there’s nothing he can do about what he’s feeling, which is a surge of immeasurable affection for this beautiful, brave man.

So of course, at that profound moment of epiphany about love, Mick cracks his eyes open again.

“Are my balls out? Babe. Cover my balls. Those are just for you, okay? If anyone sees, they gotta tip properly.”

And then he’s out like a light and Ray’s left snorting and choking on the amusement _and_ the love.

**Author's Note:**

> Come talk to me on [tumblr](https://pheuthe.tumblr.com/)


End file.
